The Soul Project
by Delmire
Summary: "You're ripped at every edge but you're a masterpiece." - Halsey - Colours. The government announced the New Hope Project and cited that they would create a new world where no one gets left behind but is all as it seems? Akihito just wants to protect the one person who means the world to him while Asami is trying to protect life as they know it.
1. Prologue

**AN: Hi! This is just the prologue, a teaser if you will. The first actual chapter should be within a week or so.**

 **Tags: Heavy angst, AU – souls and soul powers, reincarnation, violence, slow build, slow updates.**

 **This is going to be angsty AF and updates will be slow purely because I have a weird relationship with angst haha I put slow build purely because it's a while before Asami/Akihito actually meet and interact properly so its not a slow build relationship Choose Me style.**

 **As usual – come find me on FB or Tumblr under DelmireHart**

It started when the government announced the New Hope Project.

The goal was to bring out the inner soul of anyone, giving them access to their latent power. For every soul had power beyond our normal realm but the human needed to be in touch with that soul to access it. Each person had a soul that had lead hundreds of lives, reincarnating at the whims of some unseen force to walk again upon the earth. It was said that the closer you are to your soul, the greater the chances of unleashing your true self.

The reflection of your soul would shine through in a physical manifestation.

A gift of ability beyond many wild flights of fancy.

Some were born with access to their gift while some found it later in life, often in relation to dramatic events both of the joyful variety and the more traumatic. Thus scientists argued that the soul could be forced into projecting its true form onto a person and opening up access to use that gift at any time. A person need access it just once to be able to use it for the rest of their lives.

But the trigger was different for everyone. Many critics argued that the soul couldn't be unlocked without the knowledge of the trigger least people are subjected to horrors in a futile effort to unlock their gift. Others argued that the gifts were acts of god for good deeds in previous lives and people should leave such lofty ambitions alone.

Who are we to play god?

The government claimed that the tests were safe, harmless. A chemical cocktail that would leave no lasting effects other than access to one's true self. But just to be safe, they were only conducting test on willing volunteers. The terminally sick, the permanently damaged, the poor. They would let these poor humans be reborn with access to their soul's true form. They would create a better tomorrow for all of humanity so that no one would be left behind.

Government officials and leading scientists exclaimed again and again over the benefits to humanity while brushing aside concerns over testing methods. _The worst that could happen is nothing._ That's what they said, all reassuring smiles and unconcerned appearances. The chemical reactions induced in the volunteers that cause no reaction to the soul's true form would leave no lasting damage on the person.

Rumours circled around the depths of the internet and were whispered late into the night, under the cover of the protective darkness. Cruelty, death, torture. Yet in the light of day, there was no evidence to give these wild warnings any credence. Proof of mistreatment vanished from even the darkest recesses of the internet and the world carried on as usual.

Interest in the project was regularly sated with updates from those leading the research. Pictures and video footage appeared on TV of people with disabilities suddenly able to take flight with spotted eagles wings or using the ability to move objects with their mind.

It was slow going, they were doing everything cleanly and in the best interest of humanity, they said. It's going to be a long while before the serum is fully tested and able to be given to the population at large. That was the price to pay for humane testing and treatments.

All appeared so peaceful and well-meaning. The transparency from the government soothed ruffled feathers and only the most extreme of all the devout still questioned our place to be tampering with such things.

 _Who are we to play god?_

It was said as the barest whisper into the dark while the world kept turning, people carrying on with their lives as normal.

It all started when the government announced the New Hope Project.

But most knew it as The Soul Project.


	2. The Angel on Earth

**A/N: Take this as your final warning.**

 **Heavy. Angst.**

 **Come comfort me from my angst on FB or tumblr under DelmireHart**

Takaba Akihito was one of those that were born with access to their gift.

Initially, his parents just thought he was an exceptionally healthy baby. He never got sick and his injuries always healed remarkably quickly, sometimes they even wondered if they imagined the cuts and bruises they were gone so quickly. It wasn't until he was a toddler and they brought his new baby sister home from the hospital that they realised he was special.

Yasuko had been born with a massive tumour growing out from her brain. It bulged grotesquely from her head and she had been given just weeks to live. The doctors had advised that surgery would kill the baby and suggested kindly that the Takaba's take her home to spend what time they could with her before she passed. So it was with heavy hearts and misty eyes that they introduced little Akihito to his new baby sister.

His mother had sat down on the couch with the wailing baby in her arms and tears running down her cheeks to shakily beckon her curious son over.

" _You're a big brother now, Aki."_ He remembered the way her voice wavered and how she still summoned up a smile for him, even through her pain. _"She's very sick so we might not have her in our lives for long, but let's treasure every day with her, okay?"_

Akihito didn't remember what exactly happened after that but his mother had told the tale often enough that it was almost a memory, so vividly could he imagine it from her words alone.

He had put out a chubby little hand, _"Gently."_ His mother had said and he had brushed his fingers oh so gently across blotchy cheeks as Yasuko screamed her lungs hoarse.

His parents had watched in stunned silence as he began to sing the lullaby that his grandmother would sing to him as a tiny baby. His soft childish voice seemed to echo through the house as majestic white feathered wings sprung from his back. His fingers carefully caressed over the enlarged tumour on her head and they stared in amazement as it rapidly shrunk away. The crying stopped and the little baby blinked up her brother before slipping off to a peaceful sleep.

Akihito had ran his fingers through the soft tuft of hair and said softly, with an air of maturity that was only found in those who had aged well past their prime; _"All better now."_

His mother had reached out a shaking hand to card her fingers through the soft plumes of his puffy wings as she quietly sung a line from the same lullaby.

" _Guardian angels are near, so sleep without fear."_

The hospital confirmed that all remains of the cancer was gone from Yasuko and she was now a completely healthy, normal baby.

He had an old soul, people said. He was a healer with bright angel's wings and a sunny disposition. The Angel on Earth, people called him. His mother just called him her Aki Angel. Few knew about his gift, it wasn't something that came out often, but he was generous with anyone and everything that he came across that he could help.

So once he hit his early teens, his parents decided to take him to the hospital to see if maybe he could save a life or two. They knew how happy and fulfilled healing others made him, saving lives is surely his calling.

Instead, the trip to the hospital nearly killed him.

That's the thing with those who want to heal others, they don't want to save just one or two people. They want to save _them all._ Akihito walked into the hospital and felt all the pain and suffering, he felt all the people reaching out for help, for an end. Children, mothers, fathers, sons and daughters. All hurting and lost and desperate to be well again. He could feel when someone slipped away in emergency or lost their battle to cancer. He could feel their last goodbyes in his very bones and he learned that he could not heal death.

Akihito collapsed in the middle of the hospital, wings out and arms wrapped around his head as he rocked back and forward. There was just too much pain and suffering trapped within those cold, unfeeling walls. By the time his parents managed to remove him, he was in a catatonic state. It was hours before he was responsive again and he had nightmares about the hospital for many months afterwards.

Instead, he found his solace in a local nursing home. Not even he could heal the ravages of time but he could ease the elderly's pain for a short while. Everyone there had accepted their fate and their impending death so he didn't get swallowed in feelings of desperation. Instead, it was a quiet, peaceful place. He went in regularly and soothed away the aches and pains caused by age while he played games or traded stories with the elderly.

It was there that he realised for first time that he could end a life as easily as he could save one. He had gone to see one of the bedridden patients and as he brushed his hand across her arm, Akihito realised that if he took away the pain then her body would give up and give out. Eyes wide and voice wavering, he told her as much.

" _There are worse things than a painless death at the end of a full life and I have made my peace. I have no one to see me off and these old bones have done their time. I understand if you don't want to, dear. You can walk away if you want to, I won't hold any grudges. You are young yet to face death."_

He had looked into her dim brown eyes before carefully taking her hand in his own. Akihito had unfurled his wings and carefully took away all the pain as he stood a silent witness to her final breaths. It was some time before she passed but when she did, it was with a small smile on her face rather than the usual creases of stress and pain. The nurses found him standing there with her cold hand in his own and tears running down his face. He was sad, but he found he had no regret about his choice. Because it wasn't his choice to make, it was hers, and she had chosen to go at a time of her choosing with her head held high.

She wasn't the last person that he helped ease the passing of. Some chose to go while surrounded by friends and family, some chose just after their visit and some had no one to see them off and so chose a day that had other meaning. There was a peaceful kind of meaning to be found helping those who had lived a long life move peacefully onto their next journey.

Akihito would have said that he had seen enough death now that would not be phased by it anymore.

He had never been more wrong.

When the government announced that they were conducting research to try and bring out peoples gifts, Akihito was actually excited. Maybe there would be more people like him, those who could heal others. Maybe they would have a chance to save more people from early deaths and the world could be a better place. When he saw the people with disabilities in the videos performing such remarkable feats, his mind raced with possibilities.

How idealistic he had been.

How young and naïve and stupid he had been.

It all came crashing down with such startling abruptness that Akihito could almost believe it was just a terrible nightmare. He was in his final year of high school with the final exams looming large over his mind and had just finished greeting his family as he headed to his room to study before dinner. He remembered teasing a pouting Yasuko over something inconsequential and the vague hum of music coming from the kitchen. He remembered the sense of peace and love that was steeped into the very foundations of their home.

Akihito remembered the exact moment his entire world fell apart.

The door was kicked off its hinges with earth shattering force and heavily armed and armoured people came streaming through the doorway. Feet thumped on polished wooden floors while voices yelled out commands. He watched it unfold almost in slow motion. Rough hands grabbed at him and he watched as his mother and sister were dragged resisting towards the door. His father yelled from the living area and the sound of a gunshot echoed loudly in Akihito's ears.

The scent of gun powder and blood filled his senses and he was hyper aware of his father's missing voice. He fought to turn his body enough to glimpse through the door but was held back by bruising fingers. Armoured men walked out from the lounge empty handed and oddly relaxed.

He remembered the shrill sound of his mother screaming as it all finally sunk in.

He numbly turned his head to watch her struggle towards the living room. Time was slow and stilted as a dulled metal gun was raised to her head. He watched in horrified denial as it was placed against her temple and the trigger was pulled.

The splatter range was so large that it showered Akihito in tiny warm red droplets. He wasn't even aware that it was his voice that was screaming as he reached a hand out to his mother. His wings spread, carelessly knocking a vase to shatter on the ground. Her face was half missing and she was left to slump to the ground forgotten and degraded as booted feet kicked her to the side and walked carelessly through the bright crimson blood.

No matter how much he reached out to her, no matter how much he screamed and begged and cried, not even he could heal the dead.

All it took was a bare minute to have his world shatter like broken glass at his feet.

It was Yasuko's screams and pleading that brought him back from his heedless state. The words that were spoken around him were murky as though being said through water as he fought to remain conscious while his world crumbled down.

"NO!" Akihito screamed as they dragged his sister by her hair.

This was his last family member, his beloved little sister. Nothing could happen to her.

He wouldn't let anything happen to her.

Akihito struggled with renewed strength, adrenaline and desperation allowing him to ignore the bruises and cuts across his body as he fought his capture. He froze when a gun was placed to her head while she sobbed uncontrollably in absolute fear.

"Come quietly and we'll let the girl live. Do anything stupid and she loses her head. We only want you so she's disposable, get the hint?"

Akihito nodded woodenly and let rough hands drag him outside before they threw him roughly into the back of an unmarked truck. He glimpsed his neighbours standing on the footpath looking on in fear but none tried to step forward. Yasuko was thrown in after him and he cradled his sobbing baby sister in his arms. Her tears soaked through his ripped uniform while he warily watched their captors. His brain was refusing to accept the death of his parents as real.

This was all a nightmare.

Please. _Please let it be a nightmare._

They drove for a long time, there was no windows in the back to show their progress only the dim artificial light that glinted dully off the weapons aimed at them. Impassive masks stared wordlessly at him and for the first time in his life, Akihito felt less than human. He felt like some insect plucked from the ground at the whims of a wayward child. They stared at his wings and watched him as though he was going to lash out and taken them all down. He wanted to scream at them, scream and yell and cry his very soul out because he was a healer. He didn't do violence, he didn't fight.

He helped people, he didn't hurt people. He could never harm anyone intentionally.

The silent, oppressive drive was finally brought to a stop and Yasuko was wrenched from his embrace. They were forcibly dragged out from the truck and Akihito noted that they were either underground or in a building. Unblemished grey concrete walls held them in and artificial light stretched harsh shadows out in all directions. They were walked through a maze of corridors, coming across no one else with just the dull thumping of booted feet to herald their arrival. Akihito found he was still too distressed to pull in his wings properly so they sat furled against his back, the feathered tips scraping across the floor.

A feeling of dread rose in the back of his throat as he was pulled roughly into a room. There was a man gagged and tied up with ropes in the middle of the floor. A fat suited man smoked a cigarette from a chair off to the side of the room and more suited men lined the walls with guns in hand. Beady eyes gleamed at him and the fat man's jowls wobbled as he took a drag on his cigarette, blowing the smoke out with an air of smug delight.

Akihito gasped as his knees scraped the hard concrete as he was forced down and he flinched when Yasuko's quiet sobs rose in volume to echo off the walls.

"So, this is the Angel, hmm?" Akihito flinched again at the nickname rolling off the man's tongue with an emotion he could only call greed. "'The Angel on Earth'." He said mockingly. "A healer with some renown in the sleepy little Minami Ward community. The thing about healers though…"

The fat man stood and strolled around to stand in front of Akihito, leaning down close enough to let his rancid breath fan over his face and Akihito cringed away.

"The thing about healers," He repeated. "Is that they can stop a heart from beating just as easily as they can start it again. Isn't that right, Angel?"

Akihito sat frozen in horror. Technically he knew he could but he would never do such a thing. He opened his mouth to protest but was cut off by Yasuko's frightened cry and he whipped around to see a gun pressed into the side of her head while a thick arm was wrapped about her throat to prevent her escape. The fat man wheezed out a laugh as he took his seat again.

"You see Angel, we are creating a new world order. Such a romantic concept, no? We are going to create a world where everyone has access to their inner gifts." His eyes ran greedily over Akihito's wings and he tried to draw them in even closer, the man's very gaze felt like slime over his skin. "Our problem is that there are some people that are trying to stop our noble cause. Our soul project needs time and money to develop and some very annoying people in very hard to reach places are slowing our progress. But you… You don't need a weapon to kill. All you need to do is touch them for a few seconds and they are dead without any trace of foul play."

The man nodded towards those that were holding Akihito in place and he was dragged forward until he was within inches of the bound man. He looked into scared brown eyes and for the first time noticed the tears running down blotchy cheeks to soak the gag while shoulders shook heavily with the force of the man's muffled sobs. It tore something inside Akihito to see such terror and hopelessness in someone's eyes.

"So Angel, how about a demonstration?"

Akihito turned his head to look at the fat man with wide eyes. No. _No._ He didn't mean…

"Kill him. Stop his heart from beating." He said greedily. Akihito vaguely registered the excitement in his voice but was still struggling to grasp hold of the meaning of his words.

He was a healer. He couldn't…

The sound of a gun releasing its safety met his ears and he spun to look at Yasuko in horror. That was a sound he had only heard in movies before right then and he never could have imagined how it would make his blood run cold.

"Kill him or your precious little sister dies as well. Because you will obey me, one way or another. Now, before I lose my patience."

Yasuko sobbed quietly, her pretty face contorted in absolute terror and Akihito couldn't let anything happen to her. He would protect her at all cost. She was his world and the only thing he had left now. He turned back to the man in front of him and reached out with a trembling hand. The bound man wailed incoherently behind his gag and shook his head from side to side.

Akihito's vision blurred as tears escaped.

"I'm sorry." He whispered brokenly as his hand brushed across clammy skin and he mentally reached out through the man's body, quickly locating his heart. Taking a deep shuddering breathe as Yasuko's crying resounded in his ears, he squeezed.

The heart stopped beating and the man convulsed, choking behind his gag. Akihito squeezed tighter and the man's eyes seemed to pop out as he suddenly listed to the side. There was silence for a few minutes as the man continued to convulse on the floor before he finally stopped as his last breathe left his body.

Akihito was sobbing outright. He had killed someone.

 _Murderer._

The one gift that was supposed to do absolute good in this world and he had used to take a life at the command of another. But he had to keep Yasuko safe. She was the most important thing in the world.

That thought held less comfort than it should.

Because he knew that this was only the beginning.

"Good." The fat man stood with a satisfied smile. "Throw them in separate cells, she's our good behaviour insurance."

Akihito continued to cry as he was dragged through underground passageways until he was finally thrown in a tiny concrete cell. There was no window, no bed, only a bucket in the corner. He couldn't hear Yasuko's cries anymore and that made him cry even harder.

He curled up in the corner of the dank cell and wrapped his arms around his knees while he rocked with his anguished sobs.

The visions of his mother with her face being blown apart and the man convulsing on the ground haunted him.

It was his fault.

The Angel nickname felt like a hollow farce in light of his new reality.


	3. The Fallen Angel

**A/N: This was not what I intended to write today. In fact, I began working on the Grumpy Thistle Fairy but I'm super tired and my mood went weird and now here we are. In case anyone noticed that there was no updates last week, long story short; working full time + job hunting/interviews + chronic illness = exhaustion. Updates will probably still be patchy for a bit. We'll see.**

Akihito flinched as the door to his cell opened with a groan of protest.

"Get up, Sakazaki wants to see you."

The guard sounded bored, as if he wasn't about to walk Akihito to a fate worse than death. He didn't know how long he had been sitting on the cold concrete of his cell for. Hungry, alone and heartsick, he had been left to replay the events leading up to his sentence over and over.

Because that's what it was.

A sentence to a life that he couldn't even stomach to think about. To kill on the order of another. Nameless, faceless people that Akihito didn't know but that couldn't ease the pain of ending a life with so much potential left. He could only hope that the ones that the hits were ordered on were bad people that had done things to deserve such a fate but something in the way that he had been taken suggested that wasn't the case.

It suggested the opposite would be true.

But he couldn't say no. He couldn't fight back. Not when it was more than just his own life at stake. Yasuko was his world, all that he had left and she was his number one priority.

Akihito would do anything to keep her safe.

Numbly, he rose to his feet and followed after the guard. They were immediately flanked by more heavily armed and armoured men. There was a part of Akihito that was almost gratified that they thought he was powerful enough to be a threat but mostly it just made him feel sick. He was a healer, he wanted to scream, he didn't _hurt_ people.

As they led him down the stark corridors, Akihito struggled to fight off the memories it evoked. The terrified whimpers of his little sister, the pounding of boots along the floor that seemed to toll their demise. The solid footsteps haunted his nightmares almost as much as the bright blood that had painted his family home.

It was the sound of finality and no escape.

The sound him descending further into this waking hell.

They arrived at a different room this time. It was an office that was gaudily furnished but it was the man lazing behind the desk smoking that Akihito kept his attention on. His shirt was unbuttoned and the hair on his head and face shone greasily in the light.

"Hello Angel."

Akihito shuddered at the way his voice seemed to verbally leave oily slick across his skin. It was insidious and leering all at once. His very countenance screamed greed and Akihito knew immediately that this would be the man to strip him of all humanity.

"I am Sakazaki, your new boss." The man drawled lazily, obviously taking Akihito's silence as obedience. "Only been here two days and already we're got your first target."

The man opened a folder on his desk before turning it around to move across towards Akihito but the blond didn't budge.

"What of my sister?" His voice was raspy from misuse. No matter how much he had screamed and yelled and begged, nothing had changed. That didn't stop the nightmares or the fervent denial that had consumed him. All that was left was unfeeling numbness surrounding the flickering flame that represented need to protect someone who meant more to him than his life.

Sakazaki waved his hand dismissively. "Back at school. As long as you do what I tell you, then she'll continue to live a normal life. Courtesy of the government, of course."

That caught his attention. "The government?"

"Oh yes. You and I are both employees of our ever loving government." The man's smile was razor sharp and predatory. "As of now, you are our biggest supporter of this soul project that they are working on. You are going to be ensuring its unopposed success. Isn't that exciting? A little help from you and your useful little gift and the rest of us will be able enjoy our own soon enough."

His stomach roiled. The government. The people elected to look after the nation, to ensure its wellbeing and protection, was the same force that took the lives of his parents? How. How could anyone sanction such a thing?

"Ah, don't look like that." He spread his arms wide and grinned. "We are just helping along the new age. But more importantly," Sakazaki's smile dropped immediately and his eyes bored into Akihito's. "You obey me or your sister will be lucky to just end up in Tokyo Bay. Do you understand, Angel?"

Akihito nodded jerkily.

"Good. Now," He gestured at the photos laid out on his desk and the teen walked forward on wooden legs until he reached the edge of the desk and looked blankly at the photos of a large, balding man. Wispy tufts of grey hair valiantly tried to cover his skull and his eyes were dull and clouded with a lopsided smile as though he was drunk. "Fukumoto Teika is your first target. He's at a formal gathering tonight and you will be one of the waiters there. All you need to do is get close enough to touch him and stop his heart. We have multiple people planted there so don't even try and do something stupid. In the chaos, one of them will get you out. You'll get more info once your there."

The teen nodded mutely again in response. He missed whatever gesture Sakazaki made before he was being forcibly dragged out of the office on shaky legs. The iron grip of the guard pulling him along would likely leave finger shaped bruises. The pain was somehow grounding however. It reminded Akihito just how real this nightmare was and kept his thoughts on what was coming.

He was thrown into a bare bathroom and instructed to clean up. The warm water washed away the dirt that clung to his skin but the usual comfort from showering was strangely missing. It almost seemed to mock his inner turmoil. With jerky movements, he turned off the hot water completely and gasped in shock as the water turned icy. Normally he would have howled and jumped right out in indignation but much like the pain from the bruising grip of the guard, it served to mirror his tortured feelings. It cleansed him almost painfully and it was with relief that he turned off the water to step out feeling numb all over.

An ill-fitting suit had been left out for him and he dressed thoughtlessly.

Perhaps that was the way to get through this; numb and unfeeling, with eyes blind to his own actions.

His bare feet slapped softly against the cold concrete as he was led to the same vehicle bay as the other day. Shoes and socks were thrust at him as he was manhandled into a dark, unmarked car. A woman in a similar waiters outfit clicked her tongue in annoyance before slicking back his unruly blond hair. Not a word was spoken while they travelled and even upon reaching their destination, he was dragged along by the woman silently.

A tray of sparkling champagne flutes was set in his hands and cold brown eyes demanded wordlessly that he get to it. Walking out onto the floor of the glamourous gathering was like stepping into another world.

Everything glittered; the glasses were polished to perfection, while the people were dripping in jewels and the lights above just highlighted the scene. It felt bright and jarring like an overexposed photograph to Akihito.

As he drifted amongst the fake flattery and whispered gossip, he wondered just how little his captors cared about his success or failure. Throwing him unprepared with no warning, no plan and no information just screamed how little they cared about him actually achieving his mission. Maybe they didn't really believe that the healer could kill and it was all just an extended test. Had the first not been enough? Did they doubt his obedience when he was away from the immediate threat of losing his sister? Maybe they had no information or maybe they didn't think he'd remember.

All he had was a name and a face. Perhaps it was better that way.

His movements would be random, his confusion about ending up in the wrong locations unfeigned. Perhaps that was the plan, to give him the most unassuming persona and no information to spill if it all goes wrong.

The crowd parted up ahead and Akihito laid eyes on his target for the first time. The grey, balding man was red-faced from the alcohol and laughed loudly with boisterous enthusiasm. His round belly shook with the force of his bellows and he seemed like some jolly old grandfather.

Akihito moved in a daze towards his party and it felt like he was underwater. The conversation surrounding him was garbled and each step was like pushing his body through watery resistance. His vision tunnelled down to his target alone as he slid up next to the wildly gesturing man. The tray of fresh champagne was offered up like a token offering of one last comfort before his untimely demise.

Being drunk made Fukumoto clumsy and Akihito put his hand up to help the man grab his drink. He took a deep breath as their skin brushed together.

Yasuko.

It was all for Yasuko.

Upon expelling his breath, Akihito reached out and mentally clutched at the fat man's heart, squeezing with ruthless force and stopping its rhythm mid-beat. Fukumoto gasped, falling backwards as he clutched at his chest. The teen was pushed back into the crowd as people surged forward to try and help the man twitching on the floor.

Akihito had been wrong.

So very, very wrong.

He couldn't shut his eyes to this. He had felt the man's heart flutter as he stopped it, felt his body seizing as it clamoured for life. He had felt it as though it was his own body. It was like a douse of icy water over his head and suddenly everything came back into too sharp focus while time sped ahead in double time.

The tray of champagne crashed to shatter across the floor, the noise unheard in the panic of the party. Pale faced and retching violently, Akihito was dragged from the room by the woman from earlier. Nothing but acid lined his empty stomach but he wasn't given much chance to calm his heaving before being thrown into the unmarked car.

Shoulders shaking, he cried quietly as they travelled in silence back to his new cage.

He repeated his sister's name like a prayer in his head. A litany to chase away the new demons that were circling already, desperate to add to his waking torment.

 **VFVFVFVFVFVFVFVF**

"Sir, Fukumoto Teika has been pronounced dead at the scene of the gala."

Asami sighed and tossed back the last of the whiskey, revelling in the burn as it slid smoothly down his throat. He sat the empty glass down before replying.

"Is there any evidence of foul play?"

His secretary pushed up his glasses before replying in clipped tones. "No. The coroner will need to confirm but all symptoms point to a heart attack. There has been no reports of suspicious individuals or activities in the area, it was almost suspiciously quiet in fact, and he was a large, aging man who had downed copious amounts of alcohol in the span of a few hours."

"So the only thing that is suspicious is the timing and lack of movement this evening."

"Correct."

Asami sighed again. He hadn't kept much of an eye on the gala that evening, what with it being at a rival's establishment and for all intents and purposes just a chance for the wealthy and influential to rub elbows and gossip. Such things did not have enough benefit to him that made it worth dealing with the simpering fools vying for his attentions so he rarely bothered to attend. Perhaps that had been a mistake.

"The meeting with the League was tomorrow and rumour had it that he had finally decided to join. If we had such information, then others must have as well. Is there a poison that could have similar symptoms?"

"Yes. However," Kirishima looked troubled as he spoke, his secretary hated being in the dark as much as he himself did. "It would be too hard to engineer Fukumoto getting the correct glass while leaving all the other guests safe. The amount required to take down such a large man would take effect almost immediately on any other person that was present as well as being hard to mask the taste. Sir, if it was a hit then it was completed by something other than what I have encountered before."

"A Gift, perhaps." He murmured as he pulled out a cigarette. The nicotine was a sweet balm on his rising tension.

"Perhaps." Kirishima looked dubious. "We have numerous reports on the current status of the government testing on the Soul Project and none indicate a person with such abilities. Quite frankly, most do not escape that process whole enough to move unseen through such a gathering."

Asami conceded the point with a nod. "Find out what you can. His death was a blow that the League will have trouble recovering from. His promised funding and connections were closer to the government than we've been able to get so far. I want a report on what you've gathered before the meeting tomorrow."

Kirishima bowed in lieu of replying and left without another word.

This new development was concerning to say the least. The League had only just been solidified and its influence was tenuous at best. Moving underground and away from official eyes was nothing new to Asami but this was on another level. The amount of destroyed and falsified evidence concerning the testing of this new drug was alarming. Even more disturbing was why the government felt the need to undertake such testing.

What possible benefit could there be in exposing its citizens to a nearly lethal mix of chemicals in the hopes of maybe unlocking a gift. Until your soul's true form manifested, no one knew what their mirrored gift would be once they aligned with their soul.

Except Asami. His gift was the ability to see into the souls of others and over the years he had honed it to help him detect the loyalties of people as well. He could see enough that sometimes he could even pick out a lie hidden innocuously amongst truth, something that had proven to be beyond worth time and again. It was hard to trust implicitly in his line of work but being able to see people's soul gave him that luxury. Perhaps the most interesting thing was how the images would change over time. People's essence would always remain the same but would warp with their experiences as they lived out their current life.

It was a secret he once kept close to him but with the mounting threat of an underground war with the government looming closer, Asami more openly wielded his gift.

He stood and moved to the large floor to ceiling windows that over looked the city. The lights twinkled prettily but he was blind to the beauty of the view. He often thought of Tokyo as his city but he wondered how long that would be the case. They got so frustratingly little information from their inside sources about this possible threat.

Why?

Why was information so tightly controlled?

The government was notorious for corruption and sloppy handling of anything it put its hand into. All of his own political contacts and moles turned up nothing at all about the New Hope Project beyond what was force fed to the nation. The horrors of the experimentation and the lack of information range alarm bells for him. Asami was all for technological advancement but a success rate of five against a thousand mangled corpses was ludicrous.

Something bigger was at play here and he had been among the first to step forward to join this so-called League of Salvation and pledge his support to help stop the experimentation.

He caught sight of his frowning reflection in the mirror and stretched. Large feathered wings darker than night fanned out from his back and Asami admired the plush plumage in the window. His reflection was shadowed and broken by the lights from the city below, it seemed like a fitting image for one such as himself.

The Fallen Angel, he had heard people whisper the title on the edge of hearing many times as he walked past. It was a name that he had not picked but it felt fitting all the same. Obsidian feathered wings and a crown of Tokyo's underground; Asami could not dispute that the title summed him up fairly well.

It was amusing to think that people felt that he had fallen from grace rather than risen from hell but somehow that thought seemed to make people even more fearful, more reverent.

Whatever the reason, the name proceed him as much his other. He rarely indulged in such idle thoughts but there was something pleasing about being the unnamed king of Tokyo's underworld and being dubbed such a title by his underlings.

Asami Ryuichi, The Fallen Angel.

He snorted in derision and pulled his wings back in. For now, he had too much work to do in relation to his businesses and he could not afford to become lax. Not even in the face of the impending storm.


	4. Hello, Angel

Akihito's world narrowed down to grey concrete walls and irregular meals of sloppy gruel. Each day was torment; waking or sleeping, his demons followed him without mercy. Each new assassination just added new images to his nightmares.

The warm blood that gave life to his mother splashing across his skin, the twitching convulsions of the bound man as Akihito stopped someone's heart beating for the first time. The too vivid feeling of reaching out and grasping someone's heart. Of forcing it to stop so suddenly. The way their bodies twitched and jerked as they fought desperately to cling to life. He had hoped that he would grow numb to it over time. That everything would all blur together and he could turn away and block out the horrors of death.

Five assassinations for a total of six deaths by his hand. Each as clear and vivid in his mind as though he was still there reaching out for them.

It didn't matter how often he chanted his sisters name in his head, he couldn't fight off his demons. He would protect her, he would do anything for her, but he could not save himself. Akihito knew that even if he walked away now, he would never forget. He could never be the same again.

But he could keep his sisters torment at a minimum.

That thought was the only one that had him clinging to his sanity through his nightmares. He could not give up or she would face an even worse fate. He didn't know how long he had been kept captive for but it must be weeks already.

"Angel."

Akihito's head jerked up at the name. He had been so lost to his waking nightmare that he hadn't even heard the door to his cell open. Dragging himself to his feet, he followed the guard out with his head hanging low. He idly noticed that the long wounds he had scratched into his arms had already healed. He had to fight back hysterical laughter at the sight.

It felt awfully unfair that he could take a life so easily yet be able to heal himself so quickly that he never really felt physical pain. All Akihito could feel was the sharp pain of a wound marring his body then it was gone. He had never felt the dull throbbing ache of an injury mid healing. He had never had to spend a day sick in bed or be temporarily unable to use a limb. Maybe all this was his penance. A waking torment of the mind to balance out him not being able to feel other pain.

But how he hated his old nickname. 'Angel'. What a farce. He couldn't even remember the sound of how it would roll of his mother's tongue so sweet and full of love. It felt like a lifetime ago. He was no angel. Even if he had been once upon a time, he was certainly one no longer. His wings wouldn't even manifest now. The last time he had been able to pull them out was on the day he had been captured. Once he had been thrown in his cell to rot by himself, he had pulled them in never to be seen again. Out of a morbid curiosity, he had tried to manifest them multiple times but just couldn't.

He was never to be an angel again.

His body moved on its own as he entered Sakazaki's now familiar office. Ignoring the man's slimy voice, he moved to look at the photo with dead eyes. That was how it was always done. A photo and a name. It was a woman this time. Soft brown eyes framed with dark hair stared softly out from the photo. Suko Miyu was her name and she could almost be what Yasuko would look like when she was older. Dread roiled in his gut and he glanced up to Sakazaki. The man was watching him with a hard glint in his eye.

"Don't get all worked up just because it's a woman, Angel." Akihito flinched at the name and his eyes slid back down to the photo. "You remember what's at stake, don't you?" At his nod, the man continued. "This one will be a little harder, you are going to start part time work at an office building. You are going to be the coffee boy. You know, the one who takes all the hotshot's coffee orders and files paperwork and so on. You will be working five days a week but only for two to three hours per day. You'll be driven from here every day until you get a chance to come in contact with little Suko-chan. Don't think you can get away with anything stupid either."

And so, Akihito started his first ever office job.

It was so surreal.

All these people where just going about their lives as though nothing was wrong. As though their coffee order being wrong was the worst thing that could ever happen to them. He just wanted to grab someone and shake them. How could they be so unaware? How did they not understand how precious life was, how this could be your last moment before your entire world turned upside down? How could they not see how lucky they were and how miniscule their issues really were?

It was that surreal feeling that was finally able to numb out the images haunting Akihito. For a short while, at least. It was such a jarring disconnect that he found himself unable to connect with anyone at the work place. It didn't matter if someone smiled at him, was kind to him, or tried to get to know him, he politely remained withdrawn from everyone. He just couldn't comprehend how they were able to go on as though nothing was wrong. As though the world was still spinning. Logically, he knew it was. But mentally, it felt like his entire world had tilted off its axis and he couldn't shake that feeling.

Every day he went 'home' to the secret government facility and lay awake in a concrete cell to be tormented by his incessant demons. He wondered how his sister was doing. He wondered when he would be forced to take another life. He wondered how someone at the office could bitch and complain about someone not showing up for a goddamn after work drink as though it was the end of the world. He would have thought that being around people that treated him like a person and not a vicious killer would have helped him feel more human. Somehow it just made him feel more ostracised.

But those few hours of temporary numbness were a relief that he welcomed with open arms.

Over time, he learned that Suko-san was the head of finance for some big shot corporation. Akihito doubted that was why she was being targeted though. It wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that she was hard but fair, a solitary worker, and a genius with numbers either. She wasn't particularly well liked by the people Akihito worked with but she was widely respected. He decided he didn't want to know the truth of it. He had to do the governments dirty work for some unknown reason but that didn't mean he had to get involved any more than he already was. It was safer for Yasuko, and the remaining shreds of his sanity, this way.

So, when his opportunity came three weeks into his new role, he took it without thought. His limbs felt as though they moved on their own accord and he reached out numbly to brush his fingers across her bare arm as they walked past each other.

It took less than a second to reach out and stop her heart from ever beating again.

And less than a second to shatter his numbed state of mind and bring him lurching back to reality with all the sharpness of broken glass. He felt her pain as though it was his own in that brief moment. He felt her heart stutter to a stop as her body convulsed. He turned to watch her fall to the ground twitching and gasping as people ran over to surround her. Dimly, Akihito could make out screaming but it was distorted through his own skewed senses.

Clutching his own chest that spasmed with ghost pain, he stumbled towards the elevator. He was barely aware of his trip down to the first floor. He focused on trying not to shake too much, to not let the fresh images of his latest victim over take his mind until he was free. He stumbled out of the building and was grabbed by large hands before being dragged away. He didn't know who it was. He couldn't recognise anyone through his haze of tears.

He didn't care.

They could kill him right now and he wouldn't care but for Yasuko.

But right now, even for his precious baby sister, he was struggling to dredge up feeling of any kind. Some of the numbness from earlier was creeping back into his body while his mind replayed images of blood and screams over and over again.

It was getting harder each time.

His humanity was ripped to shreds but it still killed a little piece of himself inside to do this.

His total was now seven.

Some angel he was.

Asami held back a sigh as they were guided into the large building. The LynTech Corporation was a company that he had ties with even before his association with the League but now they were tied together stronger than ever before. It was annoying to have to find reasons to be tied to this company when what he was really after was access to the League's treasurer. Thankfully they were a tech company that recently had begun manufacturing a line of tablets that were excellent for use in his club so he was able to use the excuse of overseeing their new partnership as a disguise for all of his visitations.

The CEO was also a backer of the league, although more of a silent partner, and he had been very cooperative towards Asami providing information to his chief of finances, Suko Miyu, for the league. That wasn't the reason for Asami's visit today however.

No, today had more dangerous connotations behind it.

It was becoming increasingly apparent that there was an assassin on the loose. One that was highly skilled at covering up deaths to make them look like heart failure, but a killer all the same. There was no other reason for people of the League to be dropping dead like flies and all from the same cause. It was too suspicious. Asami had always been careful with his own security but others were not so cautious. Just where these people had been getting the information from was another matter entirely but the least they could do right now was ensure that each member of the League was as safe as possible.

"Asami-san." A greying businessman approached before reaching out to shake his hand firmly. "Thank you for stopping by personally."

"Of course, Furuta-san. It's my pleasure." Asami replied neutrally.

Furuta, LynTech's CEO and founder, made a show of small talk as he directed him to the boardroom where they would have their catch up. It would be a secure location to talk more freely but Asami could never be too careful, especially with places he hadn't been able to vet personally. Habits that had helped him rise to the top of the Tokyo underworld served him well for this new venture.

He had always known that going against the seemingly rogue government would be a dangerous endeavour but he didn't think he would also be working so blind. How could you fight an enemy you couldn't see?

Information and careful planning was his usual answer but information was frustratingly limited in this case. It bothered him more than he would like to admit. He didn't like this feeling of the unknown. He was used to being able to see things that others couldn't, discern things that others couldn't, and this was all the more frustrating for that blindness.

"We will be safe to talk more openly here," Furuta said once the door to the boardroom was closed. The room was spacious with a long oval table in the center and plush office chairs set around it. One wall was comprised completely of one-sided glass and it looked out over the floor to the offices below. Asami approached the window and watched the officer workers scurry about in their organised chaos, unaware of his stare.

"I am quite concerned by these recent 'accidental' deaths of people involved with the league." The CEO continued after a moment of silence, "Am I wrong in suspecting that they are less accidental than they appear?"

"No," Asami said slowly as he continued his inspection, "We suspect as much as well. It's too co-incidental. Personally, I do not believe in coincidences. I trust you have already taken preventative measures? Both yourself and Suko-san are potential targets."

"Of course. We have extra security to vet people at the door and staff are only given access to the floors they require to work rather than the entire building." Furuta said gravely as he took a seat at the table.

Asami frowned, glancing back at the other man through the reflection in the glass in front of him. "This will not be someone coming in with a gun or a vial of poison. What of checking through current or temporary staff? Many do not have as strong loyalties as one would wish or would perform a task that on its own, seems innocent, until it's pieced together in the big picture."

"What are you suggesting, Asami-san?"

Through the mirror, he saw his assistant step forward and offer the CEO a small bow before he began to speak. "We believe that this person may be using a Gift rather than more conventional methods. This would be much harder to trace and would fit in nicely with the governments current tactic of trying to gather a registry of Gifts. It's currently optional and has only been implemented since the New Hope Project was announced less than a year ago but I understand they are now looking to make it a mandatory field as part of school registration."

"What could they even do with that information?" Furuta said, bewildered.

"There are some people with very special Gifts in this world, Furuta-san, and everyone has a price." Asami's voice was solemn. "It seems as though they managed to get a highly capable and untraceable assassin on their side. I think that alone speaks for what they are looking for."

"Not everyone has a price," the older businessman said sharply, "There are those who cannot be brought."

"No?" Asami's lips twisted into an ironic smirk. "What would you do if someone put a gun to your head?" he paused, watching the other man's expression twist into contempt through the glass. "What if someone turned that same gun to your wife? Or your daughter?" That made the other man pause. "Everyone has a price. You just have to be ruthless enough to find it and use it. It's crude, ruling with fear is never something that can be successful over a long period of time, but it does work."

Furuta nodded, conceding the point. "But if it a gift as you say, it's going to be exceedingly hard to find this person and stop them before anything else happens."

"The most important thing we need to know right now is what they look like. Motivations aside, you are correct. We cannot truly prepare against an unseen, untraceable force. Do you have security cameras covering the entire workspace?"

"Not the entire thing, no. I can make that happen within the week however. It would not be hard to achieve."

Asami's reply was halted as he watched a young blond very purposefully brush past Suko-san who was no doubt on her way up to meet with them. He watched almost in slow motion as she stumbled back and fell to the ground but it wasn't her that held his attention. As the screams of other workers echoed around the floor, he watched as the young man stumbled back clutching his own heart as though he was in pain as well. As the blonde turned to stagger towards the elevator, Asami activated his own gift and was treated with a glimpse of white wings before he was gone from his vision.

"Looks like we won't need that security footage after all," Asami said, unable to fight back a triumphant smirk. He didn't have much chance to look too closely but he saw enough. He knew exactly who the assassin was and how they had managed to pull off these seemingly accidental deaths.

"Hello, Angel."


	5. Wait For Me

"We have found what appears to be an old research facility used in the beginnings of this Soul Project."

Asami leaned back in his chair and observed the other league members through their video conference. It was too dangerous to all meet in person but very easy to utilize the anonymity of the internet to hold gatherings. Video feeds of businessmen, scientists, politicians, and lawyers filled his screen. The people of their alliance came from all walks of life to lend what aid they could against the insidious threat of the government testing. So far all of their efforts to prove their suspicions had been in vain.

This breakthrough however, could very well supply the proof they needed.

"The tip off was passed to us through an ex government researcher who refused to say any more. They apparently feared for their life just from giving that much information. I organised to send men there to guard her and hopefully secure her trust however she was missing when they arrived. There were signs of a struggle at the property, including bloodstains on the floors."

"How long between her giving us this information and the researchers disappearance?" One of the politicians asked, her voice hard.

"Less than twenty-four hours." Silence met the man's soft words while the gravity of the situation sunk in.

"We may not have proof of their misdeeds just yet but this swift action and the targeted assassinations prove just how desperate they are to keep us out." Asami spoke for the first time that evening, drawing attention to himself. "You do not respond with such force or efficiency for no reason. The government is rarely this organised, I have said this before but it speaks of a higher power being in control. This suggests many people answering to one person, not debates and negotiations between many parties like there usually is."

"I agree." Another member spoke up, this one a high standing lawyer. "All of our contacts know nothing about the Project beyond what is released to the public. Not a single one has been able to infiltrate the ranks and any that seemed to be close have disappeared without a trace. I know there are still people among us who doubt but surely meeting this hard wall of resistance is proof enough."

"From all my research, there has been no guaranteed way to draw out Gifts." Kirishima Haruki, lead scientist from Sion's research department into Gifts spoke up. "As you know, I have dedicated my entire life to this line of research. The only ways that I have seen outside of people's everyday lives have been from horrific recounts of torture. Even then, the chances of clinically inducing that level of torment safely enough to leave the patient's body whole let alone their mind intact is near on impossible. We need to know what they are doing and why."

"The facility appears abandoned but still has guards in place. This in itself suggests something of interest." Asami said, taking back the conversation. "I will lead the excursion to investigate, my men are some of the top of their field. We will have cameras to send footage back to headquarters live to be recorded in case the worst occurs. Sion's annual charity function is in eight days and I trust that you have all already received your invitations. I can have a number of private rooms set up to stream the camera footage if any of you wish to see the reality for yourselves."

"I will come with you." Haruki interrupted, looking determined. "It would help immensely if I can see things first hand for myself. Danger goes without saying," she said forcefully, silencing any protests before they began. "I may see things that would otherwise be overlooked. It is worth the risk, we are quickly getting stopped before we even understand what we are facing. We need answers now or we lose the fight before it even truly began."

"Furuta-san, I hope you don't mind helping to coordinate our first use of your camera prototypes."

"Not at all, Asami-san, it would be a most excellent opportunity." The man replied with a small bow at the camera. LynTech Corporations latest advances in small, lightweight, but powerful cameras would prove especially useful in this particular mission.

"I will take care of the rest. I hope you all support our charities with generous donations while you attend the function."

The assent was quick. Few wanted to expend such large personal resources on what still could possibly be a wild goose chase. Asami knew without a doubt that there was something very sinister going on with this soul project being undertaken, the signs were all there. Some people weren't willing to believe until the evidence was beyond any doubt and thrown in their faces. Many people of the League were supporting the cause with words alone and would dance around the request for any further help. It was frustrating but to be expected. Others were just looking for a way to build new connections with certain figures, Asami himself included, or even looking for a way to exploit possible government weakness.

He could only hope that with this mission he would be able to answer his lingering questions.

The conference was quickly concluded after that. Few could afford to spend so much time away from their duties. Asami sighed as he accepted his tablet from his secretary. Spreadsheets sat open with figures that made his mouth twist down in distaste. He had never been fond of paperwork, he had always preferred to be doing something than sitting pouring over numbers.

"These are the figures estimated for the mission off the top of my head. I will update it as the plan is put into place and I am informed of more accurate costs." Kirishima said by way of explanation.

"You did this while we were speaking?" Asami couldn't help but feel a little bit impressed all over again about his secretary's prowess with numbers.

"Yes. We have undertaken such ventures in the past and I used those records to extrapolate this estimate. It will not be a cheap undertaking but it is quite vital. I imagine we can use our efforts in this endeavour to encourage others to involve themselves more in the league as this progresses. It would be beneficial for us to hold a strong position in the alliance so that we can be more involved in the decision making."

Asami hummed in response as he perused the numbers. The Kirishima siblings Gifts were truly quite remarkable. Kei could read a spreadsheet once over and recite it back to you perfectly ten years later. Anything with numbers he had perfect, almost photographic, memory for and it would always stay in his memory. Numbers never faded with time. He could also read a spreadsheet and manipulate the figures with superhuman speed to give more useful data analysis almost instantly. His sister, Haruki, was the same but for words. She was able to remember every single written word, hand written or typed, she had ever read. She described it once as though she has a huge mental library that she could pursue at any time with a perfect mental catalogue of where everything was. As a researcher, it was an incredibly useful Gift to have.

They were also the first people that Asami had ever seen that had their souls tied together. It was a rare occurrence to see. Until he had met them in high school, he had never come across tied souls before. Forever, as long as they reincarnated, they would always be siblings. Perhaps in their next life Haruki would be the older one, but they would always be together. It was his first realisation that souls _could_ be tied together. His next was his close friend and bodyguard Suoh with his now wife, Natsuko. Soulmates. Forever to be reincarnated to find their way to each other for eternal love. It was a rare gift and one he kept from them for a long time. He only informed them that he could see how their souls were linked on their wedding day.

Over the years, he had seen very few with linked souls. He had seen family bonds, bonds of friendship, and more rarely, those of romantic love. And now he had glimpsed something he never thought possible. Images of bright blonde hair and white angel wings filled his thoughts for a few moments before he spoke again.

"Get preparations underway immediately. Also ensure that each of our alliance friends are watched. If word of our movements makes it to the enemy, then we know the spy is amongst the top ranks of the League. We have barely begun, we need to cement our group now. I feel like this is going to be far above what anyone ever thought." Asami sighed as he handed the tablet back. These instincts were the same that he used to climb the underworld ranks and he trusted his gut feeling as much as he did his logic and cautiousness.

"Of course, sir." Kirishima bowed and made to leave until Asami stopped him.

"Make sure all the troops, including your sister, have gear that completely covers them. If this assassin shows up, all he needs is skin contact to kill."

"Understood."

Asami sat back in his chair after his assistant left. So far the blonde angel had eluded their capture while been steadily culling their outer ranking members, successfully stopping their recruiting. Also making it difficult to get information. That wasn't why he was so anxious to see him again however. He had only had the briefest chance to activate his gift and peer into the young mans soul but it was enough to come to several conclusions.

An image of brilliant white wings had spread out behind him and Asami knew instinctively that he was a healer. But the image that overlayed that was far more troubling. Ghost images of chains binding his body circled him with the ends of the chains connecting to the shadowy hands of others. A shadowed form loomed over him with a knife at his throat slowly cutting deeper and deeper into his pale neck. The chains chafed at his skin, in some places cutting deep, and his brilliant white feathers were grey and dull, many falling to the floor leaving wide bald patches.

It was a horrifying image.

And it was his soul reflection as he stood right now.

Asami knew for certain that he was merely a puppet dancing to someone else's tune to protect something, or more likely, someone. Those chains and the knife could mean nothing else. His Bound Angel felt like he had no choice. A healer being forced to kill was a grave offense and it was obviously slowly tearing him apart. It had been weeks since he had seen that barest glimpse and Asami feared what might have changed in the meantime.

Because the other thing he saw was that his soul tied to Asami's own. All that he could do was desperately hope that his Angel could hold on long enough for him to get to him.

"I'm coming, Angel," Asami said softly to the empty room "Can you wait for me?"

Akihito sat shivering in the cold dark of his cell. Usually there was the sterile florescent light keeping him permanent company in his cell but it had blown some hours ago, and no one had heard his cries for help. Or if they had heard, no one had cared enough to come and see what the problem was.

And it was a problem.

Even in the light, Akihito's nightmares haunted his waking moments like spirits seeking retribution. Now in the dark, he was surrounded by constant nightmare. He realised that this was the first time he had been in the dark since he had been ripped from his home.

It felt like an entire lifetime ago.

More even.

He felt like he had died every time that he had taken another's life. How many times did that mean that he had lived through hell? He no longer cared to keep count. But the names and faces haunted him. The spasms of pain echoed through his body as he remembered stopping hearts from beating. As their bodies desperately tried to cling to life but inevitably failed.

Akihito was at the point that he could barely enough focus on why anymore.

His sister Yasuko's face was blurred in his memory and he could no longer remember the sound of her voice. His demons had overridden all of that as they staked their claim in his mind. Worst of all, the only memories he could summon of his parents were from the day they died. The splatter of crimson blood and the terrified screams that distorted themselves into unhuman wails in his dreams.

He cried until he could cry no more. Then he used his nails to carve tears of blood down his cheeks. He couldn't summon any tears of water now so the only thing that was left was to pay homage to his sins in blood and pain. It was a bitter reality that the wounds would be healed over so quickly. Akihito wanted the wounds to weep for him. Weep blood and hurt and appease his waking demons.

When the door opened, he didn't initially realise. So lost to his torment, the dim light was nothing more than a new facet of his nightmare. It wasn't until one of the guards swore as he was bodily dragged from his cell did he realise that real people, and not visions, stood before him. They eyed him like he was a madman. It was oddly satisfying. He had hated how they had feared him at the beginning. It was hurt deeply to be so feared when he had never hurt anyone before but he no longer cared.

Once, he was a healer.

Now he was a demon.

As usual, he was escorted by guards to Sakazaki's office. It was a path that Akihito knew by heart now. The only thing that was different this time were the nervousness of his escort. He spared them little thought. His only focus was one foot being placed in front of the other. The marching of boots on the grey concrete always sounded like a death toll to Akihito. It wasn't inaccurate, he supposed. The only time he walked this corridor with his escort was to sentence another life to death.

The door to the garish office swung open to reveal Sakazaki sitting at his desk, booted feet up on the table as he reclined back in his plush office chair. His eyebrows jumped when he saw them and he addressed the guards.

"What the hell happened?"

There was a long, uncomfortable silence before finally someone stepped forward and spoke.

"The light in his cell blew and we found him screaming in the darkness when we came to bring him as ordered." Interesting, Akihito didn't remember screaming. "The blood was there already but no wounds visible. I don't think he's entirely sane, sir."

Sakazaki observed him a moment before shrugging in dismissal. "It doesn't matter, does it Angel? It doesn't matter as long as you do as I say so your precious little sister gets to keep her pretty little head." His eyes flicked back to the guard. "Change the light bulb. I would prefer that we do not lose our asset."

One of the guards nodded and left while another shoved Akihito forward, towards the desk. There were two photographs on the desk this time. One was a dark-haired man with a handsome face and smouldering golden eyes.

"This one," Sakazaki said, tapping on the photo of the man, "Is a bonus. We've been lucky enough to get a tip off about what's going down tonight and my employer would pay a great deal to see Asami Ryuichi dead. But he's not your true target. Take care of him only if you get the chance. I would rather keep your services than lose you to that cunning bastard."

Akihito memorized the name and face before turning his attention to the other photo. His heart stuttered at the image staring out from the picture. A woman with kind, brown eyes framed by glasses and dark hair pulled back in a bun stared out at him. She looked like Yasuko might do when she was older. It tugged at something inside of Akihito and he hungrily drunk in the details of the picture. Suddenly he was desperate to give his baby sister a chance to grow into her own, to grow up and grow old. He wanted to see the woman she will grow into when she was older.

The thought firmed his wavering resolve and helped banish back some of his demons into the shadows. He was doing this for Yasuko. He was nothing without her. He would ensure that his little sister got the life he had always dreamed of since she came into his world many years ago. He had saved her life then as he would continue to do now. It was Akihito's duty to protect her.

"This one is the most important. She's a serious threat to my employer, too smart for her own good. She's your priority. Got it?"

Akihito nodded as he searched out a name for his next target.

Kirishima Haruki.


	6. Find What I'm Looking For

"I know you usually prepare for the worst, Ryuichi, but this doesn't feel like a just in case precaution." Kirishima Haruki glanced about the room filled with heavily armed and armoured men. Each possible inch of their skin was covered and she was being helped into similarly concealing garments.

They had left the annual charity event under the pretence of spending time with an old acquaintance of Asami's in a private room and were in the final stages of preparing for their upcoming mission. His old friend was a silent funder of the League and more than happy to help with the operation to get more information. Kirishima Kei was just finalising the other League members viewing arrangements and once he joined them, they would be leaving for the old research base.

"Do you truly think there's a spy in the high ranks of the League?"

"Yes," he replied shortly. "There was too much information given out too quickly for it to be chance. The League had only just formed and started putting plans in place when the assassinations began. There has been no chance to form a proper alliance and vet everyone. Truthfully, it was poorly organised and running on too much speculation and rumours. But it's all we have."

"You look like you want the boy to be there." Asami shot her a sharp look but she carried on determinedly. "What did you see in him?" At his silence, she pressed on. "Our flame might have burnt out a long time ago, Ryuichi, but I still know you. You're hiding something about him. You told me that he was a puppet whose strings were being pulled by another but yet you don't want to kill him, just capture him. Tell me, what did you see in him?"

"The reflection of his soul is no business of yours." Asami said sharply.

Haruki flinched at his cold tone. "No," she said slowly, "It's not. But it has something to do with you, doesn't it?"

Asami did not respond and merely continued to oversee the final preparations. Haruki sighed and left him to it, hurt showing clearly on her face. She had always read him just a little too well. He didn't like to hurt her, he still cared for her after a fashion, but he wasn't about to risk anything until his Angel was safe in his hands.

He would save him before he was broken completely.

Asami was not afraid to step on some toes to get him what he wanted. The chance at having a soulmate was worth sacrificing things for. What was the point of having all the money in the world and all the connections to do as he please if he didn't use it? The issues with this Soul Project were serious but finding and claiming his Angel was Asami's top priority. If only he didn't prove so hard to find.

"We are ready to move, sir." Suoh, his chief of security, said, pulling Asami from his reverie.

Asami gave the order and suddenly the place was organised chaos as people filed outside into vehicles. They weren't far from the building and it wouldn't take long for the forward scouts to remove the few guard patrols so that they could get inside. A select few guards wore small cameras attached to their bodies to stream back the footage to the League, which would also be recorded for later viewing. It was time to see if all their questions could be answered.

Reports streamed over their secure channel as the units confirmed each of their targets down. It was appallingly poorly guarded. What was the point of having a few token forces? It kept out a few squatters but otherwise drew attention to the fact that the building was less abandoned than it seemed. The fact that whoever was tasked with guarding it didn't seem to care was almost frustrating. Obviously, the guards here thought it was easy money and they could get away with slacking off on the job.

Asami's men took them out laughable easily. The chatter on their line remained professional however, who knew what they would be facing. They were better than to make light of a potentially dangerous situation. Their group was quickly ushered into the building behind the forward scouts while the last group brought up the rear. Everyone was silent except for the odd calls of 'clear' as they walked deeper into the decrepit building.

"There are stairs leading down, sir. On first glance they look a little unsteady but they are actually quite sound. We found some elevators round the back but there's no power. These stairs look as though they've been put in last minute to access the lower levels without power. Requesting permission to lead the advance down."

"Go." Asami replied and their group waited with baited breath to hear what they found. The stairs seemed never ending and their steps echoed around the bare bones of the building. There was a curse on the channel just as Asami was straining to still hear the footsteps below them.

"Holy shit, you need to see this boss. Front rooms clear, we're moving further in. You're safe to descend at will." The man's voice was tightly controlled as he spoke but he was clearly shaken. He was one of Asami's most veteran team leaders in his security division. It took a lot to shake a man like that.

He traded serious looks with the Kirishima siblings before striding over to the stairs. His combat boots thumped loudly on each step and the sound seemed to bounce off the walls and echoed oddly in the thin passageway. It was almost deafening once their group was all on their way down. His heart thumped against his ribs as anticipation crawled up his spine. Would they finally have their answers? Hitting the bottom step, Asami swung around and held up his flashlight to illuminate the area. More lights joined his own as more of his group finished their descent but it took a long moment for him to fully grasp the scene in front of him.

It looked like something out of a horror film.

Blood splatters lined the walls and in some places the floor had great circles of dark patches. The room was a massive cavern and noise echoed eerily around. He could see the moving lights and hear the calls of the vanguard team exploring deeper into the side rooms. What furniture remained was broken and dusty but more chilling was the appearance of hospital beds lining each of the far walls. Asami moved further into the room and noticed that while the center of the floor was empty, deep groves into the concrete indicated that something had been forcefully removed. Closer inspection revealed restraints attached to the beds and one had some kind of medical apparatus attached to it.

"There's what looked to be an old storage room with some busted equipment left behind here. There's a few labelled containers and shelves as well. Some are hard to read but others are legible." One of the scouting guards reported.

"There's also a large padded room connected to another by what seems to be one-sided glass," another scout chimed in. "The entire padded room is covered in the stains of some kind of dark liquid. I can't confirm if it's blood or not."

"We need to get samples of everything back to my lab, this doesn't suggest people willingly undergoing treatments. We need to know what's in that store room too." Haruki's voice shook as she looked around.

"Stay with the group." Asami warned. "It hasn't been cleared as safe yet."

"Boss, one of the rooms is just full of bodies. Some of the bones don't even look human. They seem too… Warped. There's a couple of fresher ones too. Look like someone's using it as a convenient dumping ground."

Asami processed that information while silence overtook everyone in the operation. A rather horrifying image was being built up the more they discovered. Whatever this Soul Project that had been undertaken by the government was, it certainly wasn't what they were claiming it was. Yet it clearly wasn't the government in charge of the security. Not with such a shoddy job of guarding it. It must have been contracted out and the contractors not told what was inside. He doubted it would be so poorly protected if they had any idea what was down here.

"We've cleared the store room, no other access points that are accessible now other than the main door. It's ready for inspection, sir." The slight tremor to the young man's voice over their channel showed how badly his team was effected by this discovery.

Honestly, it had shaken even Asami's normally callous resolve.

He knew something was wrong with the project. The signs had been there. But this? This was suggesting torture out of the darkest of horror stories. There was a nauseating amount of dark stains on the floor and walls and each new discovery was more sickening than the last. Steeling himself for more horrors, he gestured Haruki forward and together they walked towards what appeared to be a storage room. The torch lights bounced eerily around the cavernous space as they walked and it highlighted the awful feeling in the pit of his stomach. The hairs on the back of his arms raised as their footsteps echoed bizarrely around the space and it suddenly seemed oppressive. He forced down the irrational panic trying to claw its way out through sheer force of will. He was the leader here, the last thing his subordinates needed to see was unease on his face.

For all that, he still almost baulked in the storage room doorway. He dreaded to put truth to what was only conjecture right now. The evidence was horrifying but not yet conclusive. Haruki was potentially about to fully realise their fears by identifying what was left. The room was larger than he thought. Long, dusty shelves lined the walls with row upon row of decrepit free standing shelves. The torch light had difficulty penetrating the room but he was able to see the contents of the closest shelves. Looking further down the row he was able to see dusty apparatus and broken glass. Haruki was walking carefully down the rows peering at the faded labels on the shelving and muttering the names under her breath. Asami took a brief look himself but it all appeared to be in scientific names. Or at the very least, they were not names that he had ever seen before. He watched as the Kirishima twin moved further away and switched to a different row.

"Cleaning products so far. Not your average, house hold grade, but industrial strength and large sized containers. Unsurprising considering what we've seen. Ah!" she exclaimed as she stopped on a different row. "These ones…"

Asami strode over to hover behind Haruki as she muttered unintelligibly under her breath. Kei's footsteps echoed as he moved further away and the fragments of light showed his progress.

"There's scalpels here," his secretary called out, "and other surgical equipment. They are scattered on the floor as though they fell from their container and no one bothered to pick them up."

"These are pharmaceuticals," Haruki interrupted, biting her lip in worry as she turned to face Asami. "compounds used in painkillers, blood thinners, antibiotics. The list goes on. Some of their uses are varied. Some are more… Specific. It… It doesn't look good. Ryuichi," her voice shook and her hand trembled where it rested against the labels. "I can't see why they would need such large quantities of these chemicals. Even when using chemicals to stimulate the human body to bring forth their gift… There's too many. This entire row allows for huge quantities of chemicals and pharmaceuticals. But there's so many different types and many of them are not compatible or their uses do not make sense with the others. These people that were here… The chemicals, the blood, the restraints…"

She looked at Asami as though begging with her eyes for him to refute her thought process. But there was nothing for him to draw any other conclusion. There was torture that had taken place here and on a terrifyingly large scale. That was the only logical explanation. Asami felt sick to his stomach. All those ads with happy, bright people demonstrating their new gifts. All the lies they had been fed and the public had lapped it up. All the deceit and removed evidence. All the assassinations. This was what they were hiding so desperately.

"Sir, there appears to be an electrocution chamber here. The number of wires leading to a chair with restraints can't be anything else." Silence descended, it was like the final nail in the coffin. There was no turning back.

 _Oh Angel, what have you gotten yourself into?_

"We're found some sort of control room." The team leader broke the oppressive silence. "There's a massive tank in the middle and a lot of computer equipment here that's built into the floor. Not things that they would be able to take away easily. Without power, there's no way to try and access any of the terminals though. Large projector screens on the walls too. There's a lot of pipes and cables on the floor that lead to the tank." There was a short pause before he continued, "It looks like something out of a science fiction film."

Asami signalled to Haruki before turning to make his way back out. "We are coming to take a look."

One of the scouts came back to lead them down to this new room. Shadows flickered about the main room as they passed the doorways that led to the previously discovered horrors. The faint, putrid smell of death as they passed by one door suggested the room of bodies mentioned earlier. Haruki choked and brought her shirt up to cover her nose as she bravely continued to follow them further into the building. This place was certainly not for the faint of heart.

Entering the main room didn't give him the answers he was after unfortunately. He looked out from a small metal balcony with his torch helping to illuminate the chamber below. A large, cloudy glass tank stood proudly in the middle of the room and the computer terminal clustered were all powered down. With the pipes and cables crawling across the floor, it truly did seem like something out of a fanciful movie. Frustratingly, he was left just with more questions after the scouts reported that there was nothing else in the room. There were a number of doors leading further into the complex however, and from the size of the building, it must run under multiple of the warehouses above. Asami gave the order to continue the search before turning to exchanging looks with Kei. His sister continued down the metal stairs to investigate the tank further but it was obvious even in this poor light that it was empty.

"Thoughts?" he asked quietly.

"If we are lucky, there will be trace elements in the tank that we can use to try and determine what was in there. They might have degraded over time but it's the best we can hope for. I doubt anything else in this place will give us as much information as those results will. Unless we can get access to those terminals. It might be worth gutting them and taking the parts back to Sion to try and one of our specialists to access any information possible." Kirishima sighed and pushed up his glasses before admitting, "I don't think anyone would have believed that we would find anything like this tonight."

Asami was about to reply when movement down below caught his attention. His breath seemed to catch and he couldn't force the words of warning out of his throat. It would be too late regardless. His Angel looked ethereal in the dim torch light, his hair seemed more silver than blonde and his skin too pale. His face was cast with shadows but his appearance sent hope searing through his being. Maybe he would finally catch his little soulmate once and for all. But his presence here also proved his fears; there was a traitor in the upper League ranks. Dimly, he registered Kei's warning yell but his attention was caught by the too loud sound of a gun being drawn and the safety removed. The noise, and all its implications, seemed to echo in his head.

"No!" Asami yelled as he dived for Kei. He knocked the gun aside just as the man fired at his Angel and the sounded echoed about the room as the bullet ricocheted off the tank. He watched in slow motion as the young man approached Haruki who had turned at the sound. They seemed frozen in time as they stared at each other before Angel brought one pale hand up to skim across her cheek.

Haruki's last choking breath could be heard through the comms channel before it was drowned out by her brothers anguished screams.

 **A/N: ahahahahaaha …..**


	7. And It All Comes Crashing Down

The dark was no longer the comforting presence that it had been when Akihito was younger. He used to love lying in bed in the pitch black and use the lack of sight to let his imagination run wide. He could visualise scenes to play out like movies in his mind's eye; epic battle scenes of fantasy, great feats of heroism, or sly assassins taking out their target while hidden amongst the dark shadows that painted his room. That's how he would fall asleep, amid the wild imaginings of childish dreams.

Now the blackness gave the demons that haunted him form. He sat curled up in hidden room surrounded by the darkest of black. Was this what it was like to be blind? Akihito almost wished he was. Then the images of dripping blood and convulsing bodies might not be seen at the edges of his vision. Unsounded screams and the choking breath of the dying filled his ears although he was alone. His nightmares hounded him through wakefulness but never were they as vivid as they were in the dark of night.

Footsteps thumped above him and Akihito wondered if perhaps his demons had finally taken physical form to exact their retribution. It wasn't until clipped voices joined the sounds that he understood his targets had arrived. On the ride over they had told him there would be lots of professionally trained and well-armed guards and that he needed to wait until they moved away before he did anything or he would be dead before he knew it. If that was supposed to scare him, it hadn't worked but he would be cautious. He had to for Yasuko's sake.

The footsteps and voices carried on, loud but muffled, and he listened as they echoed around him. He found that he didn't fear death anymore. Akihito had never feared pain, his body always healed so quickly, but death had always scared him. You can't heal death. You can't come back after that. But now… Now it would almost be a relief.

It was becoming harder and harder to remember his sisters face. He struggled to hold onto his reasons for continuing. He could no longer picture his parents except for their final, bloody moments. He could hear no voices except for the screams and whimpers of terror. They had become almost abstract to him now. Akihito knew he should feel sad but he couldn't summon up any feeling. Numbness pervaded his entire being.

But for Yasuko, he would hold on. He will willingly sacrifice his world to the demons for his precious baby sister's life.

The woman who instructed him on the way in was sure that if he got a chance to get his targets alone, it would be here. The room was large and apparently had things that they might want to inspect while the guards move further into the compound. Dim lights flashed through his space and Akihito peered out of the tiny crack in the wall to see shadowy figures moving around the room. He listened as they summoned someone else before moving away. Perhaps this 'boss' person might be the handsome golden eyed man from the photos.

A woman moved into his view and Akihito hunched his shoulders. It was Kirishima Haruki. She was completely covered but for her face and flickering lights from above were enough to identify her. As she set about examining the large empty tank in the middle of the room, Akihito crept out of his hiding spot. It felt like he was in a dream as he walked towards her. His world narrowed down as she filled his vision and he didn't even flinch when a yell and a gunshot echoed around the cavernous room. It all seemed insignificant compared to the person who was now standing in front of him

The woman had turned to face him at the loud sound and they stood staring at each other for a long moment. Was this what Yasuko would look like when she was older? Akihito hoped so. She was beautiful even in the dim light and her stance suggested confidence and health. There was recognition in her eyes but no fear, just curiosity. Oh, how he wished for a world without fear for his sister. He brought his hand up to skim his fingers lightly across her cheek, marvelling in its smooth softness even as he reached out to her heart. Her mouth opened in a soundless gasp of surprise before she fell to her knees, clutching her chest.

Akihito reeled back as the pain of stopping her heart hit him full force. He retched even as he ran blindly from the room. His stomach heaved and he cried as his own chest spasmed in sympathy. Killing was always a douse of cold water that washed away his numbness. Panicked yells and screams of anguish echoed the halls to chase him as he bolted through the corridors. Somehow he remembered the secret short cut he had been shown and slipped inside. His two escorts waited in the large room and stood as he careened in.

"Sounds like you got at least one," one of the men drawled disinterestedly. "The scientist?" Akihito nodded, feeling too sick to his stomach to open his mouth. "What about that bastard Asami?"

He shook his head vigorously and toppled to the ground as his stomach heaved again. The feeling of her shuddering heart squeezing to a stop under his influence hit him like a punch to the gut. A shudder ripped through him as another person was added to the demons that haunted his waking nightmares. She was worse than all the others, however. She bore Yasuko's face and no fear or anger in his mind's eye. Just disappointment and betrayal and hurt as he took her life at the behest of another for a cause that was not his own.

"Damn, that bastard deserves an early grave too. Whatever, ones enough. Hurry up, we need to get out of here."

Akihito tried to drag himself to his feet but struggled. An odd shape on the dusty floor caught his attention and he reached out to scoop up the object. It was a locket with a broken chain.

"What is this?" he rasped through his sore throat. It looked oddly familiar.

"Hmm? Oh, just junk. We dump bodies here but sometimes we get to have a little fun with them before we off 'em. It's even better when they struggle, really fires you up, right? Can't be bothered to clean up the odd thing that comes loose when you are flying high." the man shared a cruel laugh with the other guard before turning back to Akihito. "Leave it, we need to leave now before it all goes to hell. I don't want to deal with that bastard or his men."

He was oddly calm as he opened the small heart to reveal what he knew was inside. A tiny picture of a younger Akihito laughed up at him. It felt as though he was looking into another life. On the other side was a little picture of his parents leaning against each other while they gazed adoringly out of the locket.

He had given the locket to Yasuko for her fifteenth birthday.

The man's words suddenly hit him along with the implication behind it.

" _We dump bodies here but sometimes we get to have a little fun with them before we off 'em."_

Slowly Akihito rose to his feet as he let the locket fall from nerveless fingers. The two men turned away from him as though there was nothing wrong but he stalked behind them as a shadow of death. It felt as though time slowed down as he easily caught up and moved his hands to rest on the skin at nape of each of their necks. There was no satisfaction to be had when they crumpled to the ground convulsing as their hearts refused to start beating again. No satisfaction but no remorse either. They didn't get added to his list of demons that haunted his mind. They weren't worthy of his guilt.

Akihito stumbled back to the locket discarded on the dusty floor and fell to his knees in front of it. The amount of dust that had been layered on it meant that it had been there for months. All the long months that Akihito killed people to protect her. To save her. But the truth was staring him in the face.

He could never have saved her any more than he could save his parents.

She had been dead, and worse, before he had been coerced into killing anyone.

"… _but sometimes we get to have a little fun with them…"_

He could only pray that her passing was swift and painless. The broken locket chain screamed that that wasn't the case.

Now all those deaths, for what? All the waking nightmares and all the pain for nothing. All those good people that were only trying to stop whatever madness the soul project was were dead by his hands. He had seen the blood on the floors and the walls as they entered this building. He had been told that this was an old soul project facility. What lies was he helping to cover up? How many more were dead now because he had killed these people? How many more would die as a chain reaction? How had he altered the course by turning a blind eye to this possibility and blindly letting himself be a puppet?

It no longer mattered.

Nothing mattered.

 **VFVFVFVFVFVFVF**

"Suoh, get him out of here!" Asami yelled over the sound of Kirishima's anguished screams. He tried to hold the man back from going down to his sister's body but it was a struggle. The bulky body guard was barely able to wrest the man away and Asami found that he couldn't look at his old friends tear stained face. He didn't regret his choice but that made it no less painful. Asami would have to face the consequence of his betrayal to his friend soon enough but not just yet.

With heavy footsteps, he descended the stairs to stop where Kirishima Haruki lay dead and gently closed her eyes. She had scoffed when he had recommended to wear a face mask, pointing out that he was also forgoing one, and this was the result. He couldn't regret choosing his angel but he did regret her death. She was a fine young woman dead well before her time and she would be sorely missed, especially by the League.

"Find him," he ordered hoarsely through their comms channel though it was mostly likely needless. His men were excellent at predicting his needs. "And bring him to me unharmed."

Acknowledgements echoed down the line. Very carefully, Asami picked up his former lover and made his way back up into the night. They had been close once and he was virtually responsible for her death so the least he could do was bring her out of this hell hole. She was still warm in his arms and he could almost imagine her only being asleep, ready to wake up at any moment. His steps echoed around him as he ascended back up into the warehouse. Suoh and Kei were nowhere to be seen but two of the support staff were waiting with a small stretcher. They had been prepared for possible crossfire but he still hadn't expected to be confronted with a close friend's death. For all their precautions, he still had naively assumed that his inner circle would all be walking out alive.

An agonized howl ripped through the night as Haruki was wheeled outside, no doubt past her grief-stricken brother. Asami had to forcibly turn his thoughts away as he waited for news of his destined one.

So close. They were so close but yet he still wasn't quite within his reach.

"We have him," a gruff voice said over their channel and Asami's heart constricted painfully in his chest. "We found him next to two bodies, still warm, and he's completely unresisting. He seems almost catatonic."

"Bring him up," Asami ordered.

Time crawled by as he waited impatiently to have his destined angel in his arms. Why had he suddenly turned on those that were with him? They weren't Asami's men or the guard would have said so. What had happened to his angel in the brief time since Haruki's death?

"Asami-sama, we have located a vehicle with two guards' two warehouses over. They appear to be waiting for someone. Requesting permission to apprehend."

"Go. Take them to our warehouse for questioning. Let me know if you learn anything else."

Rapid orders fired over the line and finally Asami heard the sounds of footsteps on the shoddy staircase. He turned to see his men appear and in their midst was his angel, head down and steps dragging.

"Sir, he was found sitting next to this." A dusty locket was placed in his hands. Inside was a picture of a recognisably younger Angel and a smiling middle aged couple. Sadness coiled in him at the implication of finding such a thing here. He doubted it would be so dusty if it had been held onto by his angel. Just who had he been trying to protect? Who had he lost to seem so broken?

Asami reached over to grab the young man's chin and tilt his head back. His eyes were bleak and his skin was grey with malnourishment. He looked like a lost soul that given up on living.

"Hello Angel." A flinch met his soft words and his eyes slid away in pain at the name but he remained silent. "What's your real name?"

"It doesn't matter." The broken words rent a whole through Asami's heart. "Just kill me."

"No. You, my little bound Angel, are mine. You will no longer be pulled like a puppet on a master's strings. You are mine, body, mind, and soul. Now, who gave you the orders to kill?"

"Sakazaki." That was a name Asami knew and for a moment he was seeing red. Heads would roll by the time he was through. His Angel would be able to be heard back at the charity event where other members of the League watched the proceedings and no doubt they would have a few things to say. The men surrounding them shuffled in agitation, also recognising the name.

"Now if you don't want me to call you Angel, you will have to tell me your other name."

"It doesn't matter," the young man repeated bleakly. "I couldn't save her." Asami pulled his soulmate up by the chin until his was on his toes and his eyes were forced to meet his own. Their faces were only a hands breath apart and he waited until the young man finally whispered out what he wanted to know, "Takaba Akihito."

Asami straightened up and guided Akihito forward with an arm around his back as reports streamed in. The two unknowns with the vehicle had been apprehended and the men exploring more of the compound had discovered multiple entrances and exits in the surrounding warehouses. Evidence was being collected to be taken back to the lab for analysis. He pushed his soulmate into the waiting limo after removing all his comms gear and was about to enter when he was stopped by his chief of security.

"I'm not one to question your orders," Suoh said with troubled eyes, "but I don't understand. Why the kid?"

Asami was silent for a moment. "If you had to choose between me or your wife, who would you pick?" Suoh's eyes flew wide at the implications of his question but he didn't let him answer the question. He didn't need to, he knew exactly who the man would pick and he wouldn't blame him.

Not that that would be an understandable argument for Kei as he had also lost a person connected to him by destiny.

Slipping into the limo, Asami gathered the tense young man up in his arms and held him tight. Akihito didn't fight him but he clearly wasn't comfortable either. Asami didn't care. He had his angel in his arms and that was all that mattered. He would explain their bound to the young man soon enough. But right now, he just wanted to enjoy a small moment of triumph before he had to face the reality of his actions, Akihito's actions, and the horrors of the government's actions.


End file.
